


Kole and Ori's Infinite Playlist

by ElCapitan18



Category: Mass Effect
Genre: Explicit Sexual Content, F/M, Mutual Masturbation, Original Character(s), Post-Canon
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-02-12
Updated: 2016-02-12
Packaged: 2018-05-19 20:18:44
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 14,851
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5979801
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ElCapitan18/pseuds/ElCapitan18
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Snap shots of Kolyat Krios and Oriana Lawson's relationship as I imagine it using songs of my choosing. Follow this young couple as they discover that love can sometimes be painful, and some people are worth the ache. (Story coincides with Misgiving and contains spoilers.)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Vicariously

**Author's Note:**

> This chapter was created before the fic became a thing, and so does not have a corresponding song.

    The Citadel was a hive of activity, now more than ever. With the Reapers destroyed, and the mass relays out of working order, everyone had a part to play in reconnecting the galaxy. Or so the Council liked to remind them all. Kolyat mumbled an “excuse me” as he wove around a pair of salarians caught up in deep discussion.

    His workday had officially ended and he was on his way home. After a quick shower he was going out for the night. Flux had a seat at the bar with his name on it. He wasn’t big on drinking, but people watching was interesting enough to make him keep coming back. Shepard was the one who began the game, the only past-time she was able to do from the hospital bed she was stuck in.

    _“Look at them all,” she mutters, almost under her breath. He can tell that she’s irritated and bored, a dangerous combination for a woman like her. Sharp emerald eyes glare out the door and into the hallway. “They’re just busy little bees, carrying on with their lives; buzz-buzz, little bee, buzz-buzz.”_

_Kolyat turns to look over his shoulder, following her narrowed eyes to the life outside of her hospital room. The nurses breeze past the door, smiles on their faces and cheer in their eyes. Everyone has something to do and somewhere to be. Unlike Shepard, who can’t even scratch her own nose. It’s why she’s so angry all the time. He’d be pissed too if he was cuffed to a hospital bed._

_With his attention elsewhere she admits from behind him. “I like to watch them work. They’re too scared of me to stop in and chat,” probably because she scares them off. Kolyat didn’t know her before she became hospitalized, but he couldn’t remember her ever being this angry. “So I like to make up lives for them.”_

_Humans are an interesting species. He can see why his father had fallen in love with this female, even if she is currently an unbearable beast. A nurse walks by the room, she’s a short human with brown hair tied into a bun, and eyes the color of the oceans on the planet below._

_Pointing her out to Shepard, Kolyat asks, “What’s her story?”_

_Without missing a beat she says, “She’s engaged to a Teacher’s Assistant, despite her parents’ fervent disapproval. She doesn’t care that they’re both so young, they’re in love. Or at least she thought so.”_

_Raising a brow, Kolyat returns his attention to the debilitated commander strapped down to the hospital bed. Shepard is very good at this game, evidence enough of her drawn out boredom. “She doesn’t think so anymore?”_

_Shepard shakes her head. “She’s met a beautiful asari dancer at Chora’s Den. They had a conversation over drinks and it was enough to make her head spin. If she really loved her fiancé, how could she be so enamored by an asari that she just met?”_

_Kolyat fights a small smile from reaching his lips. “You’re pretty good at this, Commander.”_

_“When you have to live vicariously through other people, it’s amazing the things you can make up.”_

    Now Kolyat couldn’t sit down in a public place without watching the people around him and imagining them more dramatic lives. 

    Since doing his time in community service, he’d been working his way into becoming a C-Sec officer. Aside from Shepard, and maybe Garrus, Kolyat didn’t have an overflowing sea of friends. He didn’t trust people enough to let them in, and he didn’t care enough to give friendships an honest effort. Imagining up lives for strangers he would never meet, was as close as he was ever going to get to any of the people around him.

    Shoving his hands into his pockets, Kolyat’s thought-filled trek was interrupted by the sound of a hushed argument. He lifted his gaze from the path he’d been walking and sought out the source of the disturbance. _Don’t get involved_. He was off duty. Whatever the problem was, it wasn’t his problem. In the alley way, around the corner a human female was caught in an argument with a turian. 

    She was a small little thing; her dark hair cut short and pale skin colored blue by the lights overhead. The dress she wore was an elegant black, and she carried a violin case at her side. There was an impatient twist to her expression, dark brown brows furrowed by her irritation.

    “I don’t care who told you what,” her voice spilled out of the alleyway and into Kolyat’s ears. “I had nothing to do with Sanctuary. Now, if you don’t mind, I’ll be on my way.”

    The turian lifted his arm, stopping the human in her tracks.

    _Gods damn it_. Against his better judgment, Kolyat moved to intervene. He couldn’t have stopped if he tried; his feet seemed to be moving on their own.

    Stepping into the fray he interjected, “She said she was done, you should leave her alone.”

    Slowly turning to face to newest member of their confrontation, the turian’s eyes narrowed on Kolyat. “I don’t remember asking you, kid.”

    He ignored the glaring turian and placed his attention on the girl. Either he was misreading her facial expression or she was glaring at him too. Why did he even bother with this crap? He could never win. “Are you alright, Miss?”

    “Yeah,” she huffed. “I’m fine.” It was a dismissal. The misguided little human thought that she didn’t need his help. 

    Under normal circumstances he would have left her to her fate. He had done his part. If she didn’t want his help then he didn’t want to help her. Easy was that, typically at least. Now he hesitated. He couldn’t leave her to deal with the turian on her own. She’d get hurt, and it would be his fault. 

    _Gods damn it!_  Gesturing for her to take a step in his direction he instructed, “Let me walk you home.”

    One of her dark brown brows arched at him. “No, really, I’m fine.”

    “You heard her,” the turian turned to face Kolyat full on. Taking a step towards him he growled, “She doesn’t need your help. Now get on your way and mind your own business, kid.”

    Kolyat sighed. Why was he doing this? Without another thought he also took a step forward. He answered the turian’s growl with his own warning. “And I said leave her alone.”

    “Come here and make me, kid.”

    _Fine_. His fist flew by its own free will. The day had started out as normal and boring as usual, and then it had turned to this. The bones in his hand protested upon impact with the turian’s mandible. When he moved to retaliate, Kolyat no longer stood where he had once been.

    Aiming to end the fight quickly he readied his fist for, what was going to be, a knockout punch. Before he could get his momentum going, the human’s shouting voice drew his attention.

    “Stop it!” She yelled as she pulled on his shoulder to keep his fist from flying.

    Her only success was in leaving him completely vulnerable to the turian’s attack. He threw himself onto Kolyat, tackling him off of his feet and onto the ground. Pinned under his weight he began to punch Kolyat in the face.

    With a forceful, “I said stop it,” the human used her instrument case to whack the turian off of Kolyat and onto his ass.   
As he pulled himself onto his feet the turian rubbed the side of his head and grumbled, “You’re not worth the trouble, human.” Turning his back on the two of them he left without a backward glance.

    “Are you okay?” She knelt down beside Kolyat as he pulled himself up onto an elbow. Before he could respond with a curt, _‘No, I’m not okay. I could have taken that asshole if you hadn’t gotten in the way,’_ her eyes narrowed. “You’re bleeding.” She made it sound as though it were an inconvenience. Where her tone was absent concern it could be found in her big blue eyes. 

    “Come on,” she helped him onto his feet despite his vocal protests. “My apartment is right around the corner.”

    “Look, Lady, I’m fine.” He tried to shake her grip off of his arm, but she was latched onto him like a parasite. 

    Tightening her hold on his arm she growled, “Will you just . . . Hold still!” When he stopped struggling under her grasp she huffed. “I’ll take you up on that walk now.” Offering him a small smile she reiterated, “My apartment is just around the corner.”

    Sighing, Kolyat relented. She was a pushy little human, and another confrontation wasn’t something he wanted right at that moment. Without saying another word he followed the little human back to her apartment, consented to going inside, and appeased her by taking a seat on her sofa.

    The woman’s apartment was clean, well decorated and colorful. She disappeared into the kitchen for a moment before reappearing with an ice pack and a tube of medi-gel. 

    Blue eyes pointed with irritation she grumbled, “That was the most pigheaded –“

    “Excuse me?” his mouth hung open with speechless astonishment.

    “– Imbecilic, inane, ill-advised thing I have ever seen.” Kneeling down before him she pressed some medi-gel onto his forehead before holding the icepack on top of it. Though she moved with obvious frustration, her touch was gentle and surprisingly light handed. 

    Kolyat gaped at this petite little human. He had no words. Had he not just rescued her from some turian bully? Because he was under the distinct impression that he had just rescued her from some turian bully. He didn’t have much experience in this sort of thing but, he would assume that she’d be at least a little appreciative.

    _Of all the ungrateful_ . . . “How about a thank you?” This human had a lot of nerve.

    “Thank you?” She scoffed. Putting just a bit more pressure onto his bruising brow, she said, “I had it under control. I’m not some damsel you needed to rescue.”

    The situation he stumbled upon hadn’t appeared under control. He shooed her hand off of the icepack and replaced it with his own. With a shake of his head, Kolyat muttered, “It didn’t look that way to me.”

    “Probably because you didn’t stop to assess the situation before barging on in like a knight in shining armor. Did you?” She paused long enough for him to be able to sputter out an argument. When he opened his mouth to try she spoke over him anyway. “No, because if you had you would have seen that that idiot was about to apologize for harassing me.”

    At that Kolyat openly laughed at her. This poor little girl was soft in the head. “Apologize? You’re delusional, Lady.”

    “Yes, apologize; just like you are going to do right now.”

    That caught him by surprise. “What?”

    “Apologize for butting in when you should have been minding your own business.”

    “No,” he met her glare with his own. “I saved your white human ass. I won’t apologize for rescuing you.”

    A frown took her lips, displeasure in her blue eyes. “My white ass didn’t need saving.” Eyes narrowing, she demanded, “Apologize.”

    “No.”

    “Do it.”

    “Never.”

    Her glare was life threatening enough for him to surrender after a dramatic sigh and theatrical eye roll. “Fine,” shaking his head he grumbled, “I’m sorry that you’re too stubborn to accept help when it’s offered to you.”

    “Stubborn?” Her mouth fell open incredulously.

    “Yeah, stubborn.”

    Pointing at herself she clarified, “ _I’m_ stubborn?”

    “That’s what I said.”

    Her lips thinned with her annoyance. “Are you always this childish, or did I just catch you on a good day?”

    “That depends,” he rejoined. “Are you always this bossy?”

    “You haven’t begun to see bossy, drell.”

    “And you haven’t begun to see childish, human.” The words fell out of his mouth before he thought them through. 

    The girl fought a smirk from her lips and failed. Kolyat’s chest tightened at the sight of it, his blood warming with an emotion he was unfamiliar with.  
      
    “That’s Oriana Lawson, to you.”

    The red ribbing of his frill felt like it was burning under the intensity of his blush. He prayed to every god and goddess that she couldn’t tell. “Kolyat Krios,” he feebly introduced himself.

    Her smile deepened. For once she looked at him with more than irritation and annoyance. There was a hint of delight in her eyes. “Well, Kolyat Krios, I’d say that it was a pleasure to meet you, but under the circumstances I would be lying.”

    With a scoff he rebuked, “Well, meeting your acquaintance wasn’t exactly the highlight of my day either, Oriana Lawson.”

    “I’ll try not to lose sleep over it.”

    They sat awkwardly for a moment. Neither of them knew what to do now that the introductions had been made and he had been taken care of. 

    Gracelessly returning the icepack to her, he muttered, “I should probably go.” even though he didn’t want to. What he wanted to do was stay where he was seated and learn more about this strange, stubborn human. 

    “Yeah,” she agreed when Kolyat had finally forced himself onto his feet. “Try to keep the heroics to a minimum while you’re out there.”

    He strode towards the door. Over his shoulder, he commented, “Are you going to beat me over the head with your violin case if I don’t?”

    “I just might,” Oriana teased as she followed him to the door. “Next time I see you I’ll have an icepack ready.”

    His heart jumped against his will. Would there be a next time? He fought against the part of himself that hoped there would. Like he needed the trouble this little human would surely cause him. As the door closed behind him, Kolyat couldn’t help a smile from stealing his lips. He wouldn’t have imagined this up for himself, but life was far more creative than he was.


	2. For You I Will

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> For You I Will (Confidence) - Teddy Geiger

The sound of his fingers tapping on the desk was the only one in the room as he stared blankly at the private terminal in front of him. Kolyat leaned back in his seat with a sigh as his mind returned to the petite human with the short, dark brown hair. Shaking his head, he tried for the hundredth time to push the stubborn set of her features from his mind, but she always managed to wheedle her way back to the forefront of his thoughts.

His encounter with Oriana Lawson was branded to the backs of his eyes, and every encounter since had only ensured the stronghold she had over his every waking moment. Since saving her from the turian bully in an alleyway on his way to Flux, he and Oriana had met up a few times to grab drinks. 

Kolyat rubbed his eyes as he remembered the embarrassment he always managed to cause himself in her presence. He didn’t know what it was about Oriana that made him so nervous, making him too flustered to articulate a proper sentence. The way she would smile at him when he got like that didn’t help any. She’d rest her cheek in her palm and watched him as he tripped over his words, a soft smile on her lips as she regarded him like he was a cute furry creature from her homeworld.

There was just something about her that drew him in. Whenever he was with her Kolyat found himself enraptured by the sound of her buoyant laughter, the depth of her dark blue eyes, how her intelligence was rivaled only by her beauty. Her beauty! She was a human, Kolyat had never been attracted to females of other races before. Sure, asari were beautiful, but that was just how their race was. They were meant to be attractive to all those around them, as where humans should’ve only been attractive to their own kind. Yet here sat Kolyat, living proof that the heart wants what it wants and all he could do was strap himself in for the ride. A human... he was his father’s son.

“Kolyat?” The vibrating sound of Burnek’s voice pulled him from his thoughts. Kolyat turned in his seat to see a fellow C-Sec officer leaning into the room, his mandibles flaring as he gave Kolyat a curious look. “What are you still doing here? You punched out an hour ago.”

Kolyat turned back to his terminal and quickly reread the file that had been pulled onto his screen before shutting it off and pushing himself out of his seat. “I was just reading up on a case.” he explained as he strode up to Burnek and gave him a polite nod of his head.

Burnek’s mandible’s flared again as he chuckled at Kolyat. “A case?” he asked, “Last I checked you just made officer. You hoping to get promoted to detective already, kid?”

Setting his jaw, Kolyat didn’t bother humoring the turian’s provocation. Throwing a departing wave over his shoulder, he grumbled, “See you tomorrow, Burnek.”

“Hey, Krios, wait up.” Kolyat struggled to not roll his eyes when Burnek kept up pace beside him. He was one of the youngest C-Sec officers on the Citadel, and Burnek loved to remind him of it any chance he got. Despite Kolyat’s distinct inability to make friends, Burnek seemed to actually want to play nice with him. “You headed home?”

He could have lied and said yes just to get the turian off his tail, but he couldn’t give voice to the lie. Kolyat’s only friends were Shepard and Garrus, maybe Oriana too but he wanted her to become more than his friend. It couldn’t hurt for him to at least try to be nice. 

Giving Burnek a sidelong glance, he answered, “No, actually I was going to grab a drink at Purgatory.”

“Purgatory,” Burnek repeated, his enthusiasm growing with the thought. “Looking to have some fun tonight, I see. Any chance you need a wingman?”  
 _  
No_ , was the answer that struggled against his grit teeth to be voiced. Swallowing back the biting answer, Kolyat shrugged, “Sure, I can’t promise that it’ll be any fun though.”

Burnek shrugged too, unconcerned by the warning. “It’s Purgatory,” he observed. “I’m sure I’ll be able to find someway to entertain myself.”

“Alright,” Kolyat nodded curtly and redirected his attention straight ahead. He really wasn’t any good at this whole being friendly thing. 

He and Burnek strode to the nearby rapid transit terminal and summoned a taxi that would take them from this arm of the Citadel to the other. To the turian’s credit, Burnek wasn’t terrible company. He made casual conversation when Kolyat allowed the silence between them grow too awkward, and he had a story or two that were mildly entertaining. As it turned out, bringing Burnek was better than going to Purgatory by himself.

The lively house music escaped from Purgatory in pulsating waves that vibrated the taxi as it descended onto the platform. Kolyat paid the fare and stepped out of the vehicle, staring up at the nightclub and the cocktail of people that were dancing, and stumbling, in and out of the front doors. 

As Kolyat stepped up beside his fellow C-Sec officer, Burnek whistled and glanced to where Kolyat was standing at his side. “It’s busy tonight.”

His disappointment spilled out of him with a sigh. Oriana had mentioned that she sometimes liked to come to Purgatory to dance; but she’d also mentioned that she wasn’t crazy about being boxed in by a crowd. Purgatory was crowded, which meant that Oriana probably wouldn’t be found inside tonight. Kolyat sighed again. This was the fourth night this week that he’d come hoping to run into her again, and apparently it was going to be the fourth night that he went without seeing her.

Since he’d already paid the cab fare, they might as well try and enjoy themselves while they were here. Taking the lead, Kolyat walked toward the entrance and found a space at the back of the line. After an hour of waiting they were granted entrance to the nightclub. The stench of cologne, perfume, and sweat was choked up in his throat as he wove his way through the sea of swaying bodies toward the bar. 

Waving for the bartender’s attention, Kolyat ordered them both a round of drinks and turned toward the crowd to people watch as he waited for his beer. Burnek’s gaze was also on the dancers flooding the club’s floors, his mandibles flaring as he obviously desired to join them. 

When the bartender returned with their drinks, Burnek lifted his bottle and knocked it against Kolyat’s, nodding in wordless gratitude for the drink and the company. They both took a swing of their drinks and returned their attention to the dancers. A few minutes passed like that, they shared a few words of conversation before the music’s volume became too tiresome to speak over. Burnek tapped his foot to the music as he drank from his beer. 

Turning toward Kolyat, Burnek wondered, “So, did you just come here to watch?”

Kolyat glanced at Burnek and took a swig from his beer before answering. “Sometimes it’s more fun to watch.” he said with a shrug. 

“More fun than that?” Using the bottle to point Kolyat’s gaze to the dancefloor, Burnek brought the nearby group of young asari women to his attention. 

He watched the women dance, the seductive sway of their hips as they moved and dipped to the music. Kolyat allowed a smirk twist the corner of his mouth as he replied, “They’re not really my type.”

Burnek nodded as if he understood. Taking another sip from his drink, he inquired, “Don’t have a thing for asari, huh?” When Kolyat’s response was a noncommittal shrug, his line of questioning continued. “What about human?”

Kolyat froze in place. Boring his surprised gaze into the side of the turian’s head, he waited for Burnek to meet his eyes before he asked, “What?” There was no way that he could have known about Kolyat’s growing fascination with at least one human in particular. 

Giving Kolyat a sidelong glance, Burnek casually pointed towards a couple of women at the other side of the bar. Following the turian’s tallon, Kolyat felt his heart rate pick up and his chest tighten. He’d been so focused on the dancing crowd in front of them that he hadn’t noticed the people at the other end of the bar. 

She was here after all. Oriana was seated in the corner with an asari, her dark hair was styled back and her makeup gave her a smoky seductive look. In the poorly lit club lights, she looked like a huntress awaiting her desired prey. Kolyat couldn’t look away.

“She’s been eyeing you since we walked through the door,” Burnek informed him. When Kolyat glanced back the turian nodded in assurance that he was speaking the truth. Looking over Kolyat’s shoulder he observed, “Her friend’s pretty attractive too. Maybe we should go say hello.”

Kolyat looked back at where Oriana was seated and when their eyes met an inviting smile curled the corners of her lips. His heart started to accelerate at the quirk of her darkly painted lips, all confidence fleeing from his body.

He couldn’t talk to her. What would he say? ‘Hey, you finally came. I’ve been stalking this club every night hoping to run into you’ or, better yet, ‘Oriana, fancy meeting you here. Are you tired? ‘Casue you’ve been running through my mind all day.’ Turning away from her, Kolyat leaned his elbows on the bar and ran a hand down his face. Whatever this was that was going on between them, he couldn’t pursue it anyway. She probably didn’t even like him that way.

“Well,” Burnek wondered as he rested an elbow on the bar and raised his glass to the asari girl beside Oriana he was currently undressing with his eyes. “What’ll it be, Krios?”

Glancing up at the turian beside him, Kolyat shook his head as he returned his attention to the beer in his hands. Nerves coiled and slithered along the inside of his stomach, snaking its way into his bloodstream and carving its way down his spine. No woman had ever had this kind of paralyzing effect on him before, but everything about Oriana made his mind so clouded that he couldn’t think straight. It was the way she stared at him, as though he were the most interesting person in the galaxy. Him, he laughed at the thought. There was nothing interesting about him, yet when they were together she’d stare at him and twirl her soft looking hair around her finger with that soft smile of hers on her plush lips.

Kolyat sucked in a deep breath and looked briefly at Burnek before returning his attention to Oriana. Straightening his shoulders, he forced himself to exude some sort of pseudo confidence. Without looking back at Burnek, he said, “Let’s go say hello.”

“Alright!” Burnek cheered and they stepped back into the masses to find a way to the other end of the bar.

Swallowing hard against the uncertainty massing in his throat, Kolyat pulled his lips back into a smile as he and the turian approached Oriana and her friend. When they were within shouting distance Oriana slid off of her bar stool, causing the hem of her short dress to ride up a touch and showing Kolyat some more of her jaw dropping legs. 

“Kolyat,” she threw her arms around him in a tight embrace and Kolyat couldn’t pretend like he didn’t enjoy the feeling of her pressed against him. He swallowed hard again when she released him and when he couldn’t make his mouth work to form a proper greeting her smile grew. 

“Fancy meeting you here!” she said, a playful light in her dark blue eyes. “Have you been following me, Kolyat Krios?”

“No!” He said a bit too quickly. Glancing back at Burnek he cleared his throat and tried again. “Burnek and I just got out of work and decided to grab a few drinks.”

Smiling politely at the turian beside him, Oriana offered him her hand in a human greeting and her smile grew when he shook it. “You must be Burnek. Oriana Lawson, it’s a pleasure to meet you.”

“The pleasure is mine.” Burnek replied when she released his hand.

Gesturing back to her friend who was watching the encounter from the bar, Oriana stated, “That’s Mau, it’s her eightieth birthday tonight. I promised to show her a good time.”

Burnek looked from Kolyat to Oriana then back to Kolyat. His mandibles flared a bit as he addressed the petite human standing in front of them. “Maybe I can help you on that front.” In response to the inquisitive quirk to Oriana’s eyebrow, he explained, “I’m a fantastic dancer.”

An amused smile spread across her lips and she moved her body out of his path with a sweeping gesture, “She’s been begging me to dance all night. Have at it, Burny.”

“I think I will.” Burnek nodded towards Kolyat, a wingman gesture indicating that he was separating the prey from the pack in order for Kolyat to make the kill. Striding past Oriana towards the curious asari at the bar, Burnek gave Kolyat a thumbs up and went to seduce the birthday girl.

Oriana watched Burnek and Mau’s interactions as the turian asked for a dance and the asari happily agreed. When Mau gave Oriana an excited smile Oriana waved her friend off and returned her attention to Kolyat.

Smiling up at him, she commented, “Well that was very nice of him.”

“Yeah,” Kolyat replied weakly. Nervously rubbing the back of his neck, he shifted from one foot to the other as his discomfort grew. When an expectant expression settled on Oriana’s porcelain features, he cleared his throat and mustered that false confidence he’d used to get him over here. “S-so, do you want to dance?”

Her smile grew and Oriana shook her head. Placing a hand on Kolyat’s shoulder, she stood on the tips of her toes and brought her lips beside his ear. “How about we find somewhere more quiet?”

When she returned to the flat of her feet her hand was still on his shoulder and her proximity was disorienting. Clearing his throat again, Kolyat tried to force his lead tongue to work but when it refused he just nodded his consent to the idea. Oriana grinned happily at his gesture and grabbed his hand in hers to lead him through the horde of dancers back out of the club.

Kolyat breathed in the fresh air and welcomed the cool breeze that swept down, lightly blowing Oriana’s beautifully dark brown hair. She didn’t release his hand when they were outside, but still tugged him along until they were standing at the railing that looked out onto the Presidium and the Commons. 

He felt her absence the moment she released his hand to wrap her fingers around the railing and lean into the flowing breeze. A contented smile fell over her features and Kolyat was trapped by her beauty as he stared at her. This human, so foreign from himself, was a lovely little thing and Kolyat wondered not for the first time what it would be like to kiss her.

“It’s beautiful, isn’t it?” asked Oriana as she stared out at the Citadel, the light’s shining in the space station's false night. 

Kolyat’s gaze was on her when he replied, “Yeah.”

She glanced up at him and her smile turned teasing as she wondered, “So, Kolyat Krios, did you perform any more heroics on your way here?”

“Well, Oriana Lawson,” he smirked at her, grateful that she’d taken such a confrontational mode of conversation. For some reason he found it easier to talk to her when they joked like this. “If you consider paying the taxi an act of heroism, then yes, I did.”

“They will write songs about your valor,” she replied with a laugh. Without looking away from him, she said, “I’m glad we ran into each other tonight.”

“You are?” He couldn’t stop the surprise that melded into the undertones of his voice. 

She nodded. “Whenever I go to visit Shepard I always just miss you.”

Kolyat lifted an eyebrow and allowed the teasing smirk to return to his lips. “So you’re the one that’s been following me.”

“No,” she argued half heartedly, the laugh in her voice indicating that she didn’t believe herself either. "I was just hoping to run into you again."

"So was I," the words were out before he knew he'd said them. Glancing to where Oriana stood beside him, surprise coloring her features, Kolyat pushed himself off of the railing and turned to face Oriana. Rolling his shoulders, he summoned every ounce of confidence he had. He was done fantasizing what could be. Kolyat wanted to pursue this ever growing interest in this beautiful human girl, and he knew that he was going to have to get over his insecurities in order to deserve the chance.

 _Here goes nothing_ , he thought as he breathed in deeply. "Oriana, there's something I want to tell you." When she silently held his gaze, Kolyat swallowed against the nerves in his throat and forced himself to continue. "I like you, a lot, and I was hoping that you might let me take you out on a real date. I'd like to get to know you."

Her features turned surprised again as she stared up at him before a happy grin crawled across her lips. "How about tomorrow night? Pick me up at seven?"

Kolyat blinked, taken aback by her easy and eager agreement. "Uh..." Her response had him flustered. Shaking himself back into focus, he stammered, "Yeah, t-tomorrow works for me."

"Good," she grinned at him, her dark blue eyes shining brightly under the Citadel's street lights. "Now I should probably go make sure that Burny hasn't run off with my friend. We have a recital tomorrow." 

Oriana turned to leave him at the railing but before she was out of arm's reach, Kolyat grabbed a hold of her wrist and pulled her back to him. Her agreeing to the date might have made him a bit over confident, but Kolyat didn't care. Right now all he wanted was to find out if those plump lips were as soft as they looked.


	3. If Only They Knew

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If Only They Knew - A Rocket to the Moon

Humming along to the melodic tune streaming from the speakers, Oriana maneuvered through the kitchen as she carefully prepared two tupperware containers full of lunch. No matter how hard she tried Oriana couldn’t seem to shake the smile from her lips. It was as if a brilliant bright light had been placed in her chest and all she could do was beam happily as she went about her business. She was acting like a fool and she knew it.

It had been three days since her last date with Kolyat and they had messaged each other back and forth everyday since, except for today. She’d messaged him good morning five hours ago and had yet to receive a response. Nervous that maybe he had suddenly lost interest in her, Oriana had decided to make and bring him lunch. She knew that he might think it creepy, maybe a bit clingy, but the saying ‘out of sight out of mind’ didn’t exist for nothing; and Oriana wanted to be as much on Kolyat’s mind as he was on hers.

She’d learned enough about Kolyat to know that he didn’t really appreciate surprises, but he’d probably learned enough about her to know that she enjoyed pushing his buttons from time to time. As she put the containers into a bag, Oriana wondered whether or not she should call ahead and give him a heads up that she was stopping by for lunch. After a second she dismissed the thought. This was a surprise, she wasn’t going to ruin her own surprise.

Oriana left her apartment and stepped into the steadily moving stream of pedestrians on their way to work or wherever it was they were going. A nervous excitement started to bubble inside of her. She hoped that Kolyat wouldn’t turn her away or be put off by her stopping by. They’d only been seeing one another for a little while but she was starting to really, really like him, like a lot, and not knowing whether or not he felt the same way was nerve wracking. 

Kolyat was difficult to read sometimes. It was more than him being drell, his exotic features and mannerisms so different than what she was familiar with. He was just a distant person. He’d retreat to his thoughts and be lost to the world around him as he silently brooded over things she hoped he’d one day share with her. There was this intensity about him, an underlying passion that few around him saw. Shepard saw it, it was why he was allowed to call her by her first name while she kept everyone else at arm’s length, and Oriana saw it too. Behind Kolyat’s lone wolf exterior, was a man of deeply running emotions, a man she desperately wanted to know better.

Distracted as she was, she safely made it to the C-Sec offices without incident. Officers moved to and from, maneuvering around her as they read their datapads or talked to their colleagues. Orana watched for a moment, fascinated by them so hard at work. So this was what Kolyat did for a living, this was what got him out of bed every morning. Taking in a deep breath to steady the butterflies in her stomach, she strode towards the receptionist at the nearby desk and offered the asari a warm smile.

“I’m here to speak with Officer Krios.” she stated before her attention was snatched away by a someone calling her name.

“Oriana Lawson,” Burnek said, his mandibles flaring as he grinned at her. As he walked in her direction he looked down at the bag in her hand and his turian smile grew. “You’re here just in time for our lunch break. Did you bring me anything?”

Tucking her hair behind an ear, she shook her head and apologized. “Unfortunately, Burny, I don’t know how to make anything that won’t kill you.” When the turian chuckled at her statement she asked, “Is Kolyat around?”

“He’s at his desk,” Burnek replied with a nod. “I’ll grab him for you.”

Her smile grew with her gratitude. “I’d appreciate it, Burny. Next time I’ll pick you up something too.”

“Careful, Miss Lawson,” he responded as he turned on his heel and started for the hall that lead to the C-Sec offices. As he left her in at the building’s entrance he joked, “Keep it up and I might have to try and steal you out from under Kolyat’s nose.”

She watched him disappear behind a door before shifting her gaze back to the asari receptionist and gave the woman a small smile. Taking a step away from the desk, Oriana secured her grip on the bag in her hand as she shifted from one foot to the other, suddenly overcome by her nerves. She really hoped that Kolyat didn’t think she was coming on too strong by stopping by. It was times like these that she wished she had her sister’s confidence. Miranda would’ve known how to act and what to say to make any man she wanted trip over themselves not the other way around. 

A few minutes passed before the doors to the offices parted again and Kolyat strode through. Her heart leaped into her throat at the sight of him. His beautiful blue green scales looked magnificent against his C-Sec uniform that hugged his muscular physique so wonderfully. She couldn’t fight the smile from her lips even if she tried, a smile that only grew when the corner of his mouth slightly twitched at the sight of her.

Distant and detached as he was, his subtle and fleeting facial expressions always seemed to make her heart race. She made his lips twitch. She had caused an outward reaction on his typically schooled features. Others might have been intimidated by his lack of expressiveness, but Oriana saw right through that protective wall he had around him. That smirk was as good as her grin, and she was determined to see an actual grin on his lips before she had to go to class.

“Oriana,” his deep rumbling voice said as he approached. “What are you doing here?”

She held up the bag in explanation. “I thought you’d like some lunch.”

His shadowed cerulean eyes inspected her closely before he nodded in agreement, allowing his lips to be pulled into a slightly bigger smile. “Alright.”

“Great!” her grin grew before she took him by the hand and dragged him outside of the C-Sec offices to grab one of the picnic tables in the courtyard not too far away. Without releasing his hand from hers, she looked up to him and smiled warmly when she caught him staring at her.

“So,” she started, her nervousness was making her chatty. “How’s work?”

“It’s okay,” Kolyat softly murmured in response.

Oriana looked back up at him again, suddenly concerned by the monotone of his curt response. Oh no, she thought, he was creeped out by her stopping by. She’d been an idiot for not calling in advance to let him know. Now he thought she was some kind of overly attached stalker. She’d ruined it, she ruined everything. 

Worrying on the inside of her cheek she released his hand when they found an empty table. She sat down and started to silently pull the tupperware containers from the bag. Placing one in front of Kolyat, who was seated opposite of her, she handed him some silverware before she attended to her own meal. 

A heavy and awkward silence joined them for some time as they poked at their food. Oriana tapped her foot to keep from demanding answers from him, but after a few minutes her anxiety was too much for her to bear quietly. “Is something wrong?” He opened his mouth to answer but she spoke before he had the chance. “I know I should have called to ask if it was alright if I stopped by, but I wanted to surprise you. You didn’t message me back this morning and I thought maybe we could have lunch. I’m sorry, I just --”

“Oriana,” he interrupted her, a soft smile playing at the edges of his mouth. “Don’t apologize. I appreciate that you thought of me. Thank you.” He blinked and his gaze was no longer on her. Kolyat peered over her shoulder as the smile fled from his features and a thoughtful expression took its place. “I just have a lot on my mind.”

Poking at her food she wondered, “Anything you want to talk about?”

She took Kolyat’s responding silence as an obvious no, but he surprised her by explaining, “Today is the one year anniversary of my father’s death.”

Her gaze flicked up from her food to watch his steady features. To anyone else he would have looked completely unmoved by the admission, but Oriana saw deeper into him than what he allowed everyone else to see. Kolyat’s beautiful cerulean eyes were pained. She set down her fork and reached over the table to grab his hand. 

Running her thumb over his knuckles she gently squeezed his fingers and said, “I’m sorry.” Grimacing at her terrible sense of timing, she said, “I really should have called before stopping by.”

“No,” he squeezed her fingers back before lacing his digits through hers. “I’m glad you came, and thank you for lunch. It’s just harder than I thought it would be.”

“He was your dad, Kolyat.” Oriana gave him a sympathetic smile, trying not to overstep any social ques. “Losing your dad isn’t ever an easy thing.”

Kolyat released his hold on her hand and rubbed his eyes with a scoff. “Still, he was hardly there for me growing up; even before my mother died. He was never home. My bad memories of him almost completely overshadow my good ones.” He glanced up from his hands to look at her, his features hard as he struggled to keep his emotions locked inside. “He’s been dead for a year and I’m still mad at him for abandoning me.”

His brows were furrowed with what she thought was disdain, and his pouty lips were pursed as he considered his words and the memories they probably stirred up inside of him. As Oriana watched him brood she felt herself get more and more annoyed by his silent reproach. She could understand him being upset over his father’s death, but what she couldn’t accept was his obvious self pity. She cared about Kolyat a great deal, probably more than she was willing to admit, and she couldn’t stand the sight of him feeling sorry for himself. He was better than that, she knew he was.

Arching an eyebrow, she inquired, “Do you think you’re the only person with daddy issues?” When Kolyat’s surprised gaze met hers she continued. “My biological father created me in a test tube.” She shook her head at the thought of the monster that was Henry Lawson. “He lured in thousands, _thousands_ , of innocent lives to a facade of safety and did experiments on them until they were toys for the Reapers. My father held a gun to my head and used me as a human shield.

“I’m not trying to justify Thane’s absence in your life, and I’m not saying that you don’t have a right to be angry at him.” She held his gaze, hoping that he would be able to see the sincerity of her words. Oriana really wasn’t trying to invalidate his emotions, all she wanted was to make him realize that holding on to his anger was hurting no one but himself. “All I’m trying to say is that your father acknowledged his mistakes and tried to make them right. He wasn’t perfect, but he wanted to do right by you while it still counted. And that has to count for something, doesn’t it?”

Kolyat stared at her for a while, his lips thin as he mused over what she’d said. Holding his gaze, Oriana wished she knew what was going on inside of that head of his. Had she overstepped her boundaries? Inwardly groaning, she scolded herself for her inability to keep her foot out of her mouth. She and Kolyat weren’t even officially a couple, what right did she have to reprimand him for being upset on the anniversary of his father’s death? _Ugh_ , she was an idiot.

That was why when he sighed, “You’re right,” it took her completely by surprise. Kolyat reached back over the table and intertwined their fingers again. He offered her a small abashed smile, and said, “Sometimes I get so blinded by my anger that I forget about how hard he tried to make it right before he died.”

Daring to try and lighten the mood, Oriana replied, “I thought that perfect drell memory didn’t let you forget.”

The smile that inched across Kolyat’s lips made her heart soar. “Perhaps I’ve been hit with a few too many violin cases.”

“Maybe one more whack over the head will fix the problem,” she teased with a grin. 

Oriana glanced down at their hands, admiring the exotic tone of his blue green scales against her pale white skin. They were so different from one another, differences that went beyond race. Kolyat was this deep, complex, and mysterious creature; while Oriana felt like she was an open book, her thoughts and emotions readily available and easy for him to read. Or at least they should have been.

Sometimes it was like male aloofness went beyond species. She'd made him lunch and dropped by unannounced to his place of work. Oriana held his hand and tried to touch him whenever she saw an opening. It was embarrassing how girly she got whenever she was around him. She thought that her feelings for him were obvious to see, but Kolyat still hadn't asked her to make it official. He still hadn't asked to be exclusive, and her own nonsensical insecurities were starting to wonder if maybe he was seeing other people aside from her.

Clearing her throat, she chased the thought from her mind. Kolyat might have been a drell but he was still a man, and she'd dated enough men to at least learn to not expect him to read her mind. If Oriana wanted to solidify their relationship she was going to have to make a leap of faith. It was time to jump.

"Kolyat," she swallowed in attempt to moisten her suddenly dry mouth. His gaze was curious as he waited for her to go on. "We've been out on a few dates already and I was wondering if maybe you wanted to be exclusive or something." His brows quirked with surprise and as he opened his mouth to reply, Oriana spoke before he had the chance. "I mean if you want to see other people, I understand. It's just that I like you, like a lot, and I'd like to see where this," she gestured to him and herself, "is going. But if you don't feel the same way --"

"Oriana," he interrupted her before she could embarrass herself any further. An honest to God grin started to inch across Kolyat’s mouth as he got up from his seat and moved around the table to sit on her bench. Straddling the seat, he cupped her cheek in his hand and turned her face to meet his gaze. His smile grew as he said, "I don't want to see other people."

His deep rumbling voice set her insides aflutter as she stared into the cerulean of his dark eyes. Oriana’s gaze flickered down to his lips as she breathlessly asked, “You don’t?”

Kolyat shook his head, his focus also on her lips. Slowly inching his face towards hers, he quietly replied, “No. Let’s make it official,” and pressed his lips against hers before she could formulate a response. 

She melted into the kiss, her senses coming to life under Kolyat’s touch. There were few things she loved more than the feeling of Kolyat’s mouth against hers. Wrapping her arms around his neck she let a girly giggle escape her as she pulled herself closer to him. The toxins in his saliva were already blurring her senses, and combined with her excitement, she was soaring on a delightful high that wasn’t entirely to blame on Kolyat. 

He wanted to make it official! He wanted to be hers exclusively and the otherway around. Another giggle burst through her and Oriana couldn’t bring herself to care that she sounded like a teenage girl swallowed up in puppy love. She took the jump and now she was falling.


	4. Navigate Me

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Navigate Me - Cute is What We Aim for
> 
> This track contain's explicit sexual content. Reader discretion is advised.

The smell of chlorine wafted through the air, a scent that had been foreign to him the first time he’d come along to Shepard’s physical therapy sessions. Shutting his eyes, Kolyat breathed in and listened to the the soft ripple of flowing water as he waited by the pool for Shepard to change out of her swimsuit. 

He was on his lunchbreak and they’d made plans to spend it together. Normally it would have been the three of them, Kolyat, Shepard, and Oriana, but there was something that he needed to ask Shepard and he prefered that Oriana not be present when he did.

He opened his eyes and turned at the sound of Shepard’s crutches clacking as she approached him. A soft smile twisted the corner of his mouth as he regarded the woman. One would think that she’d be in higher spirits considering her improved mobility, but not Shepard. Ever since waking up alive after the Reaper War it was like a darkness had consumed her, and now she was this mean, surly beast that kept everyone but him at arm’s length. 

Keeping her sane was no easy task, but he’d come to care about her a great deal in the last few months. Even though she wasn’t the same woman that his father had served under on the Normandy, Kolyat could still see why Thane had fallen in love with her.

“How was physical therapy?” wondered Kolyat as he met her halfway and walked with her towards the exit. 

She made a dissatisfied sound and grumbled, “Frustrating.” Her angry gaze was pointed forward as they walked. Glaring down at her legs for a second, Shepard explained, “I should know how to walk but my body forgot. It wasn’t so long ago that I wove through a Reaper’s legs and summoned the mother of all thresher maws, and now I can’t barely walk without these things.”

Kolyat wouldn’t pretend to understand what she was going through, because he couldn’t even imagine. Offering her a supportive smile, he stated, “Dr. Michel says that you’re progressing better than they’d expected.” When Shepard rolled her eyes at his words, he tried again to be encouraging. “You’ll be back at it again in no time, Anya. Just be patient.”

“Yeah,” she said without any conviction. Her tone turned angry as she commented, “I’ve got nothing but time.”

He didn’t bother replying. There was no point when she got like this, all he could do was be there for her and let her brood it out. In a few minutes, when they were outside and in the Presidium’s false daylight, Shepard would be back to her nonconfrontational grumpy self and they could talk like adults. 

They took the rapid transit to one of the cafes that Shepard liked and grabbed a table on the patio, silence their heavy and awkward companion. When she set her crutches aside and settled into her seat, Kolyat decided it was past time for her get over the crass mood her physical therapy had placed her in. 

After the waitress placed their drink orders on the table and left them to their silence, Kolyat took a deep breath and said, “There’s something that I wanted to ask you.”

Shepard poured creamer into her coffee and reached for the sugar caddie at the center of the table. Pulling free a handful of sugars she glanced up at him and replied, “Yes, this is my natural hair color. And no, I’m not telling you whether the carpet matches the drapes,” as she stirred the mountain of sugar into her coffee.

“What? No, that wasn’t my question.” Though now it was an image that he couldn’t purge from his mind. A small smile plucked the corners of his mouth as he shook his head. This was how Shepard got her amusement, and for her Kolyat would allow himself to be picked on. When she took a sip from her coffee and raised an inquiring eyebrow, he said, “Oriana and I are dating.”

Setting her coffee back down on the table, Shepard nodded for him to get to it. “Yes, I know that. I have to keep from vomiting at the sight of you two all lovey dovey.” Her expression turned scolding as she added, “Seriously it’s gross.”

Suddenly uncomfortable, Kolyat rubbed his palms on his pant legs as he forced himself to go on. “We haven’t yet done . . . anything.” It became harder and harder to speak as realization followed by disbelief dawned across Shepard’s features. 

“Kolyat,” she blinked back her surprise. Her emerald eyes were watching him closely as she asked, “Are we about to have a sex talk?”

“No!” he said too quickly only to sigh and confess, “Yes. It’s just I didn’t know who else to talk to about this.” Shepard smirked teasingly but at least had the good graces to not embarrass him anymore than he already was. Not knowing how else to start, Kolyat asked, “You’re a girl, right?”

Shepard arched an eyebrow and her smirk grew a touch. “Last I checked. My surgeries were extensive, Kolyat, but not _that_ extensive.”

He gave her an irritated look, fighting the urge to shake her for teasing him at a time like this. “Well, I’ve never been with a human woman before and I don’t know what I’m supposed to do.”

“Isn’t this something you can research on the extranet?” In response to the desperation on his face, she ran a hand through her crimson hair and sighed. Grimacing she proceeded to ask, “You’ve had sex before, haven’t you?”

Gods, if this got anymore awkward he was going to die right where he was seated. “Yes,” he answered with a curt nod.

“Well there you go.” His expression turned serious and Shepard rolled her eyes. She dragged a hand down her face as she struggled to find an explanation that would satisfy him. After a minute she sighed again and said, “Human women and drell women aren’t all that different.” 

When he arched a disbelieving eyebrow she continued. “Sure, some of the parts are a little different, but in the end we all want the same thing. We want to be the center of your attention, so pay attention to her. Listen to her moans and her breathing and watch how her body moves to your touch. And remember that one of the most important parts about having enjoyable sex is communication. Ask her to tell you what feels good and what doesn’t, and vice versa. Try not to overthink anything. Just relax and have fun, and remember that performance anxiety is normal.”

Horrified, he replied, “Anya.”

“What,” she shrugged, a self-satisfied smirk on her lips. “There are pills you can take if the anxiety renders you impotent.”

“Anya!”

“Hey,” she raised her hands defensively, her smirk growing at the sight of his shocked expression. “You wanted to talk about sex. I’m just covering all of your bases so that we never have to have this talk ever again.”

Setting his jaw, Kolyat assured her, “We won’t.”

An amused snort sounded from the typically irate woman, causing Kolyat’s paralyzing embarrassment to be totally worth it. Any embarrassment was worth it if it resulted in hearing her laugh or seeing her smile. Shepard shook her head and her smile turned somber. A heavy breath escaped her and she took another sip of her coffee before looking back up at him to confess, “I’m glad that you’re comfortable enough with me to talk about these things.”

“There was nothing comfortable about that, Anya,” rebutted Kolyat with a self-conscious smile.

“Still,” she said, “you talked to me about it, even though it’s embarrassing and uncomfortable. It means a lot to me. I just wanted to let you know that.”

Kolyat reached across the table and grabbed her hand in his. Looking into Shepard’s emerald eyes, he offered her an encouraging smile and responded, “You’re my friend; the closest one I have.”

She rubbed her thumb over his knuckles before releasing his hand. “That’s unfortunate.”

“You have no idea,” he agreed with a scoff.

___

So far everything was going according to plan. Dinner had been nice, he’d made it through the elcor rendition of Hamlet without falling asleep, and Oriana seemed to be enjoying herself. All that was left was getting himself invited into Oirana’s apartment. Maybe he could get into another fight, that had worked out so well for him last time.

“So,” the sing song sound of her voice pulled him from his thoughts. “Tonight’s been fun.” Glancing up at him Oriana gave him a suspicious look and asked, “Do you have something special planned?”

 _Yeah_ , he thought to himself, _I was hoping to get into your pants tonight. I hope you don’t mind_. Unsure what else to say, he replied, “Every night with you is special.”

 _Mhm_ , she hummed disbelievingly. “I didn’t forget my own birthday, did I?”

He laughed awkwardly at her joke and rubbed the back of his neck as he walked her back to her apartment. “No, you didn’t.”

“So tonight was,” she waited for him to explain and when all he did was shrug she finished, “just because?”

Kolyat liked that, just because. They stopped at the entrance of her building and Kolyat peered up at the apartment building as he shrugged again. Returning his gaze to the short woman in front of him, he asked, “Do I need a reason to wine and dine you?”

She arched an eyebrow, the playful purse to her lips letting him know that she didn’t believe him for a second. “There’s always a reason.”

“When did you become such a cynic?” He wondered as he brushed back a strand of her silky, dark brown hair and tucked it behind her ear. 

A challenging look settled on her features as she rebutted, “When did you become such a romantic?”

“I’ve always been a romantic,” Kolyat replied. A soft smile curled the corner of his mouth as he held her playful gaze. “There’s a lot you don’t know about me yet.”

“Oh is there?” When he nodded her smile grew. “You’re a man shrouded by mystery, are you?”

His smile grew in return. “I am.”

“Well,” she grabbed a hold of the front of his shirt and pulled herself up to his mouth. Without brushing her soft lips over his, she whispered, “Join me for a cup of tea, and maybe I can try to solve the mystery that is you.”

Her smell filled his nose, causing his mouth to go dry and his heart to race. Clearing his throat, Kolyat swallowed hard and repeated, “Tea.”

A sensual smirk twisted her glossy lips and she shrugged, “For starters.” She fell back down to the flat of her feet and watched him expectantly.

Briefly returning his attention to the looming apartment building, Kolyat took in a steadying breath and steeled his resolve. This was the invitation he’d been wanting all night. _Just relax and have fun_ , he repeated Shepard’s advice to himself over and over again. Looking back down at Oriana, a nervous smile unearthed on his features. “I’d love some tea.”

“Great,” she grabbed his hand and led him into the building and up the stairs towards her apartment. 

Kolyat allowed himself to be dragged into her apartment and stood by the door as he took in the familiar sight of it. Nothing had really changed since the last time he’d been here. She’d rearranged the pillows on the sofa, and there was a lavender scent coming from a lit candle somewhere. 

He watched as Oriana kicked off her heels and smiled invitingly at him, encouraging him to do the same. When he pulled off his boots and stood barefoot at the entrance of her apartment, she looked down at his toes and smiled to herself before returning her gaze to him and grinning.

“Your feet are adorable.”

Kolyat frowned. “That’s not exactly the adjective I’d want associated with any part of my body.”

Laughing at his displeased expression she waved for him to take another step into her home. “Make yourself comfortable. I’ll go get the tea started.” She turned and abandoned him in the living room as she disappeared into the kitchen. “Is chamomile okay?” her voice sounded from the other room.

“That would be fine,” he replied. “Thank you.” Walking into the small living room, Kolyat inspected the photos lining the shelf on wall. There were images of Oriana with her adopted family, and ones with her and her sister. 

Her apartment was very different from his own. Her home was warm and welcoming, with potted plants and a vibrant color scheme; where Kolyat’s was cold and barren. He didn’t have a single picture framed as decoration. The only thing that showed he was living there at all were his clothes scattered about. It was just further evidence that the differences between him and Oriana were many. _Just relax and have fun_ , he said to himself again.

He felt it when Oriana reentered the room, an excited chill rushing down his spine as he breathed in the sweet scent of her perfume when she strode up behind him. Kolyat could hear the smile in her voice as she said, “My mom took that photo on Christmas three years ago.”

Kolyat turned around to see the nostalgic look in her blue eyes. She smiled warmly at him as she passed him a steaming mug filled with tea. “Things were a lot simpler back then,” commented Oriana as she looked at the photo of a younger her in front of a tree ornamented with lights and gold and red orbs glittering from the flash. 

He followed her gaze back to the photograph and hummed in response. Three years ago he’d been living with his aunts and uncles on Kahje, angry, furious with his father for abandoning him. Three years ago Kolyat had wanted to get back at his father at any cost, even his own future. Things had not been simpler back then, at least not for him. 

“I still can’t bring myself to regret anything that brought me here,” he turned to face Oriana as she spoke, her smile was enough to melt him as if he were made of candle wax. Holding his gaze she said, “Everything happens for a reason, right?”

Without looking away from her lips he replied, “That’s what they say.”

Kolyat stared down at Oriana, his heart rate picking up as he breathed in her perfume. He watched, entranced, as she licked her bottom lip before biting down on it. Without watching what he was doing, Kolyat placed his mug on the shelf holding her picture frames and reached up for her face. He traced the line her jaw before using his thumb to release her lip from between her teeth. Oriana breathed in sharply in response to his touch, and Kolyat watched as her eyes dialated. Her nostrils flared and her eyes fluttered shut.

Oriana’s chest rose as she breathed in deeply. Without opening her eyes she commented, “You smell really good.”

Closing what little distance there was between them, he tilted her face up towards his and replied, “I’m more interested in how you taste.” Kolyat pressed his lips against hers, desperately claiming her mouth as though she were water and he hadn’t drank in days. 

A soft moan sounded from her as she pressed her body against his. Kolyat wove his arms around her, pulling her closer against him. His hands trailed up her back, one stopping at the small of her back to secure her against him as the other held the back of her neck. His tongue tickled along her bottom lip, begging for entrance. When Oriana opened up to him Kolyat invaded her mouth with a groan, tasting the sweet chamomile on her tongue as it danced with his.

Her smell was in his nose, her taste in his mouth, her warmth was setting his body on fire and Kolyat felt this primal hunger to possess her, to take her as his. When Oriana pulled her mouth from his to suck in a breath, Kolyat kissed along her jaw until he reached her ear, where he stopped when he noticed how her chest was heaving excitedly against his. Curious, he gently kiss her ear. Oriana’s breath hitched and it was all the confirmation he needed. Using his tongue he pulled her earlobe into his mouth and was rewarded by a needy groan. 

As he licked her ear Oriana’s body started to move against his. She pressed her chest against him, squirming in his arms as she moaned. Gently pushing her backwards, Kolyat moved his mouth from her ear to her neck as he guided her towards the couch. 

When her knees hit the edge of the couch, Kolyat held onto her as he gently laid her down. They stared at each other for an anxious moment as one tried to anticipate the other’s next move. Watching how her chest moved to her excited breathing, Kolyat placed a knee on the couch and lowered his face back down to hers.

Oriana wound her arms around his neck, pulling him against her as she demanded his lips to be returned to hers. She sucked on his tongue when he snaked it into her mouth, a moan sounding from her as she arched her body up to his. Kolyat felt unbearably hot as their bodies were pressed against each other so closely, his blood turning into vulcanic lava when he felt her breasts against his chest. 

His hands roved over her body, feeling down her legs until he reached the hem of her skirt. Oriana’s skin was smooth to the touch, hot under his scales. He felt up her leg, pushing her skirt aside as he moved. The way she moved to his touch, like she needed it, like she couldn’t get enough spurred him on. 

She unzipped his coat and burrowed her hands under the fabric, peeling the tight leather from his person without removing her lips from his. Kolyat shrugged out of his coat and tossed it aside. He combed his fingers through her hair as he held her face, imprisoning her mouth with his, their tongues dancing as their breathing became more and more desperate with each passing second. 

Kolyat pulled away at the sound of Oriana giggling. He stared down at her curiously, watching as she gawked up at him for a moment before looking around her apartment as though seeing it for the first time. She gaped at her hand, turning it over before wiggling her fingers. Without looking at Kolyat she asked, “What did you do to me?”

He smiled down at her. Tucking her hair behind an ear, he explained. “It’s my saliva. The chemicals in it can make humans hallucinate.”

“You drugged me?” she giggled again and hid her mouth behind a delicate hand as she tried to wipe the dopey grin off of her lips.

“Sort of,” Kolyat replied, kissing the tip of her nose. He stared down at her beautiful face and waited for her dialated gaze to meet his eyes. When she finally did he said, “It's been said that the high enhances the experience.”

Oriana’s grin grew and she snorted out a laugh. “What kind of experience are you implying, Kolyat Krios?” Her smile fell when she watched his features become serious.

He looked down from Oriana’s dilated eyes to her reddened lips. They were so plush, so soft, and so different from his own. Kolyat wanted to see the rest of her, to find more of their differences and learn what made her sigh in delight. Carefully he reached for the buttons that held her blouse together.

Returning his gaze to hers he murmured, “Whatever experience you’re willing to have, Oriana Lawson.”

She licked her lips and swallowed hard as she also reached up for his top and started to unzip him. Consumed by nerves, Kolyat concentrated on keeping his fingers steady as he undid one button after the other until her blouse fell open and revealed her delicate white flesh to him. She was wearing a dark blue lace bra that supported the twin peaks of her breasts.

Kolyat cautiously placed a hand on the curve of her neck and slowly glided down toward her collar bone. He could feel her gaze on his features as he felt her soft warm skin under his scales, but he couldn’t look away from the mouthwatering sight of her cleavage.

Drell women didn’t have breasts, as they didn’t produce nutrients from their own bodies as sustenance for their offspring. As Kolyat’s fingers traced the lacy hem of her bra he decided that he really liked this about human women.

Oriana arched her back with a moan as he lightly feathered his fingers over the soft skin of her breasts. Her eyelids fluttered shut and Kolyat watched her reaction to his touch with a hint of self-satisfaction. If he could make her react like this, while barely touching her, he wondered what he’d be able to do if he put his mind to it.

His voice was low, thick with his own desire as he asked, “Does this feel good?”

“Yes,” she sighed, her body bending again as he followed the hem of her bra from one breast to the other.

Kolyat pressed his lips against hers again, seeking the familiar dance of their tongues as his hands explored the unfamiliar terrain below. As their tongues battled for dominance, Kolyat felt down Oriana’s side until he found the zipper securing her skirt around her waist. He pulled it down slowly before breaking contact with her mouth to loom some distance above her. Kolyat watched Oriana’s chest as she breathed erratically, trying to catch her breath now that he was no longer stealing it from her mouth.

His fingers were surprisingly steady as he traced a line from her collarbone, between her breasts, down her stomach to the waistband of her skirt. Flicking his gaze to meet hers, he waited a moment for her to protest, and when she didn’t Kolyat hooked his fingers around the waistband to unsheathe her from her skirt. The first thing he saw were her panties, they were a lacy dark blue that matched her bra, before her long pale legs were revealed to him.

Kolyat leaned back to admire her and noticed when Oriana’s gaze dropped from his face to gape at the tightness of his pants around his arousal. She licked her lips and fidgetted at the sight of him, her eyes fluttering before she met and held his gaze again. She did this to him. Kolyat was more aroused now than he had ever been in his entire life, and it was because Oriana Lawson was the sexiest creature he had ever seen in the entire galaxy.

He tossed her skirt over the back of the sofa as he watched her crawl further up the sofa, as though the dark look in his eyes was now scaring her; but she didn’t look afraid. Here eyes wouldn’t leave his face, and her mouth was slightly open as she breathed. She looked like his prey and if she ran now he would give chase. 

Crawling back onto the sofa, he placed a hand on her waist to keep her from fleeing and returned his mouth to hers. Oriana gently bit down on his bottom lip, giving it a light tug as she wrapped her arms aroud his neck. A sound of surprise squeaked in her mouth when Kolyat grabbed hold of her and moved Oriana to straddle his lap.

His hands wandered up the plane of her back as he kissed her, slithering under her shirt and passing the hook of her bra before burrowing into her hair. Kolyat gently fisted the dark brown locks and carefully tugged her head back. She gasped as he bit into her neck before placing a soothing kiss on the area and doing it again. 

Oriana’s hips started to move against him, the pleasure the movement caused was so sudden that he bit into her neck harder than he’d intended. She cried out, a sound of pained ecstasy and he licked her neck apologetically as he removed his hands from her hair and roamed back down the curve of her hips.

Gripping her hips, he coxed Oriana to continue rolling against him and threw his head back to groan when she did as instructed. The feeling was potent, a glamorous lure to a trap. This spine chilling sensation was a promise of the pleasure to come and Kolyat had to fight off the overwhelming desire to throw her onto the sofa and claim her as his own.

He looked back up at Oriana, his gaze hooded as he watched her move in his lap. She leaned forward, her hot breath caressing is neck before her lips made contact with his frill. Kolyat’s hold on her hips tightened as the electrifying feeling of her tongue on his ribbing zapped straight into his spine. 

Pleased by his reaction, she did it again. Dragging her tongue along his sensitive ribbing, Oriana grabbed a hold of his face and gently moved it to the side as she claimed her vengeance. The sound that came out of him was primal, beastly. He didn’t know how much more of this he could take. 

As she studiously tasted his frill, Kolyat looked for the hooks securing her bra in place. He struggled to undo them, too unfamiliar with the blasted thing to get it off. Oriana chuckled against his neck. Leaning back she held his gaze as she reached around herself to undo it. He was enraptured by the wanton in her eyes. Oriana’s desire for him matched his flame for flame, and the sight of it made his groin ache with insatiable need.

The straps of her bra fell off her shoulders as it came loose. Oriana didn’t break eye contact as she shrugged off her blouse and removed her bra. She held it by the strap as she tossed it to the side. Kolyat’s gaze fell from her blue eyes to the newly liberated breasts. He licked his lips at the sight of them, finding it suddenly impossible to breathe.

He moved his hands up her waist stopping just short of her breasts as uncertainty froze him in his tracks. The small smile that crawled across her swollen lips was encouraging as she placed her hands on top of his and guided him the rest of the way. 

His breath was caught in his throat as the feel of her took his breath away. Oriana’s scaleless flesh was so soft, but her breasts were gloriously different. They were still soft, the fatty mounds molded against his hands in a way that made his mouth water. He had never felt anything like them before, and as he curiously rolled them in his hands, Kolyat decided that he definitely liked this about human women.

His attention was drawn to her pearled pink nipples and he glanced up and her before pinching them between his fingers. A desperate gasp tore through her and she squeezed her eyes shut in delight as he tweaked her hardened nipples. Kolyat was marveled by her reaction, unable to look away from her face as she moaned under his touch. 

He watched her lips move as she breathed out, “Suck on them.”

His heart jumped into his throat. Swallowing hard against the nerves massing in his airway, he looked back down at her nipples still squeezed between his fingers. They were designed to give milk to her young. What would happen if he put one in his mouth and sucked?

Oriana’s fingers wrapped around the back of his neck, the look in her eyes was pleading. She wanted this, needed his mouth on her breasts, and Kolyat would oblige her. He placed a tender kiss on her collar, another on the center of her chest, then one more on her breast before his tongue snaked out and trailed down to her nipple. He flicked over the hardened flesh, testing it with his tongue and gauging her reaction to him. 

When Oriana moaned loudly, Kolyat covered her nipple with his mouth and sucked. Nothing came out as he suctioned the pearled pink flesh, only another blissful moan as Oriana rolled her hips more frantically against his lap. Kolyat bit down on her hardened peak, unable to help his reaction to the feeling of her grinding against him, and she wrapped her hands around the back of his head to secure him there.

Kolyat divided his attention evenly to both of her twin peaks, pinching one as he sucked on the other until it was time to reverse. Soon Oriana was writhing in his lap and Kolyat’s blood felt so hot that he thought that if she kept up the friction they would both combust into flames.

“Kolyat,” the desperation in her voice was a reflection of the desperation he felt in his pants.

He released her nipple from his mouth and looked up to watch the flames of desire flicker in her blue irises. Kolyat stared into her enrapturing eyes and asked, “Where’s your bedroom?”

An approving smirk unearthed on her lips. “Let me show you,” she replied before climbing off of his lap and offering him her hand. When Kolyat placed his hand in hers she pulled him off of the sofa and guided him through the apartment toward her bedroom.

His gaze was on the exquisite sight of her backside as he followed her down the short hall to her room. All he needed was a glance at the room and he’d have it committed to memory, one he could reflect on later, much later, after they had created other memories in this room.

Oriana led him to the bed where she turned to face him. Her soft delicate hands felt down his body as she sat on the edge of the mattress, trailing down his chest and abdominals until her fingers were on the waistband of his pants. She smiled up at him then, a look of wanton thick on her features as she unbuckled his belt before undoing his pants and tugging them down past his ass. 

Kolyat watched her eyes widen as his erection sprang free from the tight confines of his pants. Oriana gaped at him for a beat, her gaze curious as she took in the sight of his arousal. His genitals weren’t much different from a human male’s. There was a sensitive bulb at the end of his ribbed shaft. Yes, his penis was the same maroon shade as the frill that lined his jaw and neck, but the display was relatively similar to what she’d find on her own kind.

Tilting her head, Oriana reached for his shaft and carefully wrapped her fingers along his base as she felt his length with a slow revenant stroke. A moan sounded from him at the feel of her soft fingers around his cock. The gentle friction was amazing, sending a chill up his spine.

When he looked down he was met by her blue eyes. She was watching him closely, observing his every reaction to her touches as though he was her science experiment. He groaned out again when she ran the pad of her thumb over the tip of his cock, sending a sharp electric bolt through him. Oriana returned her attention to the task at hand and licked her lips before taking Kolyat into her mouth. 

It was his saliva that was supposed to be potent, not hers; but Oriana’s mouth was a drug more dangerous than the most refined red sand. Her tongue was hot like the sun, a fiery whip that dragged along the base of his member as it was drowned by the volcanic liquid of her saliva. Kolyat threw his head back and moaned, overwhelmed by the heat of her, by the intensity of her mouth surrounding him so completely that he was trapped where he stood.

Not sure what to do with his hands, he buried his fingers in her hair, feeling the soft silky strands as she bobbed on his cock. Clenching his eyes tightly shut, Kolyat was lost in her mouth. A pool of fire was growing in his loins, its tendrils flaring and licking through his nerve endings until the white hot fire threatened to consume him. If she kept this up he would come, and he didn’t want to until he felt what it was like to be inside of her.

He fisted her hair in his hands and gently stopped her from bobbing back down on his cock. When Oriana criously met his gaze a smirk twisted the corners of her mouth at what she saw in his eyes. Kolyat didn’t have the mind to wonder how he must look to her. All he could think about was burying himself inside of her. It was his only thought, his only want, an overpowering need.

As he pushed his pants off the rest of the way, Oriana scooted backwards up the bed, not daring to remove her eyes from his for even a second. Kolyat climbed onto the bed after her, stalking her, prowling after his prey. 

When her back was met by the headboard he grabbed her by the hips and pulled her back down towards him. A surprised yelp sounded from her but there was only passion in Oriana’s blue eyes. Kolyat grabbed her panties and ripped them down her legs, not caring if he ripped the delicate fabric in the process.

Tossing her underwear over his shoulder, Kolyat stared down at the work of art beneath him. Her soft white skin was flawless like the freshly fallen snow he’d seen on vids of Noveria. There was a small patch of black fur on her pelvis, a trimmed strip that guided his gaze down to her moist folds. 

He ran his hands down her thighs to her knees, waiting for her to protest, to stop him from passing the point of no return. When not a single protest sounded from her, Kolyat pushed her knees apart, coaxing her legs to spread for him and let him see the beauty of her femininity. 

The sweet scent of her arousal filled his nose, and Kolyat firmly gripped her knees to keep from taking her before he got to explore her to her entirety. Shepard had been wrong. Human and drell females had very different parts. Oriana’s glistening folds resembled a flower, pink and delicate petals begging for his touch.

He lowered himself on the bed, getting a closer look at the wondrous sight of her sprawled open before him. Kolyat dared to touch her petals and was rewarded by a jolted jerk of her hips and her soft whimper. He felt the wet folds and inspected the moisture on his fingers. Her natural lubricant smelled so sweet and he wondered . . . 

He rubbed her labia again, all the way up to the bud where her lips met. Oriana jerked again when he pressed on her clit and he rubbed her there for a moment before trailing back down. He got his fingers nice and wet before placing them in his mouth and tasting her sweet nectar on his tongue. She tasted better than he had imagined.

Unable to help himself for a moment longer, Kolyat hurriedly lowered his mouth onto her sex with the desperation of a starved man. The sounds she made as he lapped at her, licking up her dripping wet folds, it was an aphrodisiac unto itself. Her hips gyrated against his face as he flicked his tongue over her clit before sucking it into his mouth. While he concentrated on licking her whole, top to bottom and back again, he plunged a finger into her vagina and the both of them moaned in response. All he could imagine was his cock in place of his finger. How her molten hot core would hug him so snuggly.

Her desperate breathing kept him where he was, trapped him between her legs. She was crazed now, frantically moaning and moving as he licked her petals, sucking on her clit, and strumming her insides with his conjoined fingers. Kolyat matched his pace with her breathing, licking and sucking as his fingers glided in and out of her. Her thighs squeezed around his head, her hands were on the serrated scales on his scalp as a loud cry broke free from her lips. Oriana’s back arched, the walls of her vagina pulsating around his fingers as she came. Kolyat lapped up his sweet reward before she loosened her thighs around him.

Kneeling between her legs, Kolyat watched her features as she came down from her orgasm. Heavy pants racked through her and Oriana threaded her fingers through her hair as she chuckled in what sounded like disbelief. She looked up at him, an appreciative smile on her lips that grew at the sight of the self-satisfaction on his face.

Kolyat grabbed her by the hips again, tugging her pelvis back down toward his throbbing erection. He rubbed his aching cock along her wet folds, lubricating his ribbed member before pausing at her entrance. He held her gaze, giving her one final chance to voice her disapproval. What he got instead was a consenting nod, and Kolyat leaned forward on one arm as he slowly sheathed his cock inside of her inch by inch.

“Kolyat,” She moaned as he stretched her out, her hot wet walls adjusting to accommodate him. When he was buried inside of her to the hilt, Kolyat dared to move, shutting his eyes to savor the delicasy of her molten heat encompassing him, tightly surrounding him until his brain was numb to everything but her.

With his free hand, Kolyat felt down her thigh, held the back of her knee, and bent her leg up. Her hot walls tightened around him and he groaned out it delight. The bed creaked as he pumped in and out of her, the wildfire in his loins growing hotter and hotter as he pushed himself closer and closer to the edge.

“Oh God,” Oriana cried out, her voice pinched with wanton and desperation. “Harder, Kolyat. Fuck me harder.”

Her demands were the sexiest words he had ever heard in his entire life. Unable to disobey the beauty beneath him, Kolyat rammed into her harder, each thrust jostling her and shaking the bed. He felt her core start to tighten around his cock and the immense pleasure it caused was like pouring rocket fuel onto the wildfire raging inside of him. Kolyat frantically plowed into her until her walls started throbbing around his cock, shoving him completely over the edge.

A blinding white light seared his eyes shut as Kolyat collapsed onto Oriana, the intensity of his climax shaping his body to hers as wave after wave poured out of him. Afraid that he might suffocate her under his weight, he rolled to the side and stared at the ceiling as he caught his breath. Oriana crawled nearer to him and pressed herself to his side. Wrapping an arm around her shoulders, Kolyat secured her there and played with her hair as he waited for the fog to clear his mind.

After a minute or so passed Oirana pressed a long tender kiss to his chest and said, “That was definitely worth sitting through Hamlet.”

A soft chuckle rumbled in his chest. Placing a kiss on the top of her head, he replied, “How about next time we skip right to the main event?”

Oriana looked up at him, a happy grin on her plump lips as she agreed. “That’s fine by me, Krios.”


End file.
